3 Count: No Quorum

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1: Salt-N-Pepa Sue Universal Over Ownership of Master Recordings

First off today, Ben Beaumont-Thomas at The Guardian reports that Salt-N-Pepa have filed a lawsuit against Universal Music Group seeking control over their master recordings through copyright termination.

Copyright termination is a process through which original creators or their estates can reclaim rights to their work after a certain number of years. In 2022, the band filed termination notices with the US Copyright Office seeking to end Universal’s control over their early recordings.

Universal, however, claims that copyright termination does not apply in this case. Nonetheless, they have pulled the earlier recordings from streaming, an act that the band says is punitive.

2: ​Calvin Harris Denies Copying Chicane’s 1996 Track ‘Offshore’ on New Single

Next up today, Gemma Ross at Mixmag reports that musician Calvin Harris has denied that his latest single, Blessings, infringes Chicane’s 1996 Offshore.

In April, Harris shared a clip of his song on social media. Chicane commented on the post, saying, “I would like to thank Calvin Harris for making me current again.” Chicane then posted another video accusing Harris of ripping off the opening chords to his song.

Harris released his own video disputing the similarities. He says that he does not hear any similarities, and the things that are alike are common musical tropes. No lawsuit has been filed in this case.

3: Supreme Court Won’t Take Up Case Because Too Many Justices Recused Themselves

Finally, today, Alison Durkee at Forbes reports that the Supreme Court has declined to take up a copyright infringement case. They did so not because they didn’t want the case but because they could not form a quorum after five members recused themselves.

The case is Ralph W. Baker, Jr. v. Ta-Nehisi Coates et al. It involves an author, Ralph Baker, who accuses Coates of plagiarizing his book Shock Exchange: How Inner-City Kids From Brooklyn Predicted the Great Recession and the Pain Ahead. Baker lost in the lower courts but appealed the case to the Supreme Court.

However, five of the court’s nine justices recused themselves from the case. Four of them have published books with Penguin Random House, which is named as a party in the case. It is unclear why the fifth, Samuel Alito, recused himself, though it is suspected he has purchased stock in companies named as parties. The decision allows the lower court ruling to stand.

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